Mass cycling depends on a 'no helmet' culture

[thelawnet]

So says the NYT.

Bear in mind that there's a more effective helmet brainwashing campaign in the US than this country, so this is quite a big deal for them (a quick look at the comments shows most people on the helmet-prop side):

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/30/sunda ... html?_r=1&

There does seem to be an inverse correlation between helmet wearing and 'bikeability' - the more likely people are to wear helmets, the more hostile the environment is for cycling. People might assume that this is a RESPONSE to a dangerous environment, but of course even the most ardent of helmet advocates should admit that if it's dangerous to cycle somewhere, it's still dangerous while wearing a helmet, so there's strong cause the believe that helmet wearing helps CAUSE a cycle-hostile environment.

[Mike Sales]

There does seem to be an inverse correlation between helmet wearing and 'bikeability' - the more likely people are to wear helmets, the more hostile the environment is for cycling. People might assume that this is a RESPONSE to a dangerous environment, but of course even the most ardent of helmet advocates should admit that if it's dangerous to cycle somewhere, it's still dangerous while wearing a helmet, so there's strong cause the believe that helmet wearing helps CAUSE a cycle-hostile environment.

I would say that helmet laws and pressure to wear helmets are both products of a particular approach to road safety. This is obviously an approach which does not encourage cycling, and which in fact makes cycling more dangerous. This idea of how to make "safer roads" is the idea which is dominant in the developed Anglo-Saxon world.
It is indisputable that the helmet promoting culture of these countries has failed to make cycling safe.

[horizon]

Just a passing thought while reading this...

I often wonder what drivers think about helmets. I imagine that they believe cyclists wear helmets in case they fall off. Cyclists wear helmets because of the drivers. Do the drivers realise this?

[Mike Sales]

I often wonder what drivers think about helmets. I imagine that they believe cyclists wear helmets in case they fall off. Cyclists wear helmets because of the drivers. Do the drivers realise this?

I wonder. I expect some do, some don't. I once caught up with a driver who had cut me up, and when I complained he told me I should have been wearing a helmet. Was this an attack as the best form of defence, or did he mean that if I wore a helmet his bad driving would not matter? I remember a Tory politician quoted as saying that if more cyclists wore helmets drivers would not have to be as careful around them!

[Geriatrix]

I remember a Tory politician quoted as saying that if more cyclists wore helmets drivers would not have to be as careful around them!

What makes that so bad is that he probably said it without the slightest trace of irony. I bet he thought it was perfectly reasonable.

[snibgo]

He probably did think that. To many people, helmets are magic hats that prevent all injuries.